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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

2023 Top States Commentary: A Sustained Focus on Positive Business Climate Makes the Difference

Multiple agencies in the top-ranked states have developed, implemented, and maintained programs facilitating capital investment and job creation.

Q3 2023
In reviewing the 2023 Top States for Doing Business, a few things stood out to me. The five states that rank highest overall are all also in the top five for cooperative and responsive state/local government. This is not a coincidence. While there is a myriad of factors that contribute to these states reaching the top tier in the overall ranking, a common denominator among them is governments that are responsive to the needs of business. The policies and programs within each of these states are designed to attract companies and enable them to thrive. Developing, implementing, and maintaining the policies and programs that facilitate capital investment and job creation requires dedicated and coordinated efforts among multiple agencies. The continuity among the states in the top tier is reflective of a sustained focus on a positive business climate.

A second observation was that although Southern States continue to dominate the top spots in the 2023 Top States survey, there are once again two Midwestern States in the top 10 – Ohio (#5) and Indiana (#7). These states rank particularly well in four areas that have helped elevate them to the top tier of the overall ranking and keep them there — competitive labor market, logistics and infrastructure, site-readiness programs, and business incentive programs.

For the most part, the states that rank highly in the overall list perform well in each of the categories examined. One notable exception is access to capital and funding. California claimed the top spot on this list, the only appearance for California within the 2023 results. There were just three Southeast States in the top 10 within this category — Georgia (#5), Virginia (#6), and North Carolina (#8).

The rankings for utilities are the final items of note. Utility demands have increased in recent years — and not just for mega projects. Projects of all sizes are seeking higher utility capacities than ever before. For this reason, the importance of energy availability and costs and of water availability are more critical than in the past and are likely to continue to grow in importance. Not surprisingly, Southeast States are ranked as the top five locations for energy availability and costs. In contrast, the top rankings for water availability went to two Midwestern States — Ohio (#1) and Michigan (#2).

TOP STATES FOR DOING BUSINESS 2023

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. South Carolina
  3. 3. Tennessee
  4. 4. North Carolina
  5. 5. Ohio
  6. 6. Alabama
  7. 7. Indiana
  8. 8. Texas
  9. 9. Virginia
  10. 10. Mississippi
  11. 11. Louisiana
  12. 12. Arizona
  13. 13. Michigan
  14. 14. Kentucky
  15. 15. Florida
  16. 16. New York
  17. 17. Iowa
  18. 18. Arkansas
  19. 19. Kansas
  20. 20. Illinois

Individual Categories

Workforce Training Programs

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. Virginia
  3. 3. South Carolina
  4. 4. Louisiana
  5. 5. Alabama
  6. 6. Tennessee
  7. 7. North Carolina
  8. 8. Indiana
  9. 9. Arizona
  10. 10. Ohio

Overall Cost of Doing Business

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. Alabama
  3. 3. Tennessee
  4. 4. South Carolina
  5. 5. North Carolina
  6. 6. Indiana
  7. 7. Mississippi
  8. 8. Ohio
  9. 9. Texas
  10. 10. Louisiana

Business Incentives Programs

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. South Carolina
  3. 3. Ohio
  4. 4. Indiana
  5. 5. Tennessee
  6. 6. North Carolina
  7. 7. Alabama
  8. 8. Virginia
  9. 9. Arkansas
  10. 10. Mississippi

Access to Capital & Funding

  1. 1. California
  2. 2. New York
  4. 3. Texas
  5. 4. Massachusetts
  6. 5. Georgia
  7. 6. Virginia
  8. 7. Illinois
  9. 8. North Carolina
  10. 9.Arizona
  11. 10. Maryland

Competitive Labor Environment

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. North Carolina
  3. 3. Ohio
  4. 4. South Carolina
  5. 5. Indiana
  6. 6. Texas
  7. 7. Virginia
  8. 8. Tennessee
  9. 9. Arizona
  10. 10. Alabama

Energy Availability & Costs

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. Tennessee
  3. 3. South Carolina
  4. 4. Alabama
  5. 5. North Carolina
  6. 6. Texas
  7. 7.
  8. 8. Oregon
  9. 9. Indiana
  10. 10. Iowa

Water Availability

  1. 1. Ohio
  2. 2. Michigan
  3. 3. Tennessee
  4. 4. South Carolina
  5. 5. North Carolina
  6. 6. Georgia
  7. 7. New York
  8. 8. Wisconsin
  9. 9.
  10. 10. Virginia

Logistics & Infrastructure

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. Texas
  3. 3. Indiana
  4. 4. Ohio
  5. 5. South Carolina
  6. 6. Virginia
  7. 7. Tennessee
  8. 8. Kentucky
  9. 9. North Carolina
  10. 10. Illinois

Available Real Estate

  1. 1. South Carolina
  2. 2. Texas
  3. 3. Ohio
  4. 4. Georgia
  5. 5. North Carolina
  6. 6. Indiana
  7. 7. Tennessee
  8. 8. Virginia
  9. 9. Alabama
  10. 10. Arizona

Cooperative & Responsive State Government

  1. 1. Georgia
  2. 2. Tennessee
  3. 3. North Carolina
  4. 4. South Carolina
  5. 5. Ohio
  6. 6. Indiana
  7. 7. Virginia
  8. 8. Alabama
  9. 9. Arizona
  10. 10. Michigan

Corporate Tax Structure

  1. 1. Florida
  2. 2. North Carolina
  3. 3. Texas
  4. 4. Tennessee
  5. 5. Indiana
  6. 6. Georgia
  7. 7. Nevada
  8. 8. South Dakota
  9. 9. Ohio
  10. 10. Arizona

Site-Readiness Programs

  1. 1. South Carolina
  2. 2. Georgia
  3. 3. Ohio
  4. 4. Tennessee
  5. 5. Indiana
  6. 6. North Carolina
  7. 7. Virginia
  8. 8. Alabama
  9. 9. Kentucky
  10. 10. Iowa

Favorable Regulatory Environment

  1. 1. Alabama
  2. 2. South Carolina
  3. 3. Georgia
  4. 4. Tennessee
  5. 5. North Carolina
  6. 6. Indiana
  7. 7. Ohio
  8. 8. Texas
  9. 9. Louisiana
  10. 10. Mississippi

Speed of Project Permitting

  1. 1. South Carolina
  2. 2. Alabama
  3. 3. Georgia
  4. 4. Mississippi
  5. 5. Tennessee
  6. 6. Indiana
  7. 7. Virginia
  8. 8. Ohio
  9. 9. Iowa
  10. 10. North Carolina

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